News on August 23, according to foreign news VICE reports, like most online platforms, TikTok has long had problems with content moderation. From violent extremism to hate speech to deepfakes featuring prominent figures in defamatory positions, it's not all sunshine and roses for the newest major social networking giant of the 21st century.

In 2020, the platform struggled after attempts to moderate cyberbullying led to brief restrictions on LGBTQ+ content. To make matters worse, The Intercept's report found that videos featuring ugly, pathetic, and disabled people were filtered out by human moderators to create an aspirational feel on the "For You" page.

Now, TikTok is facing its latest moderation challenge: Anonymous accounts that say easy access to online single-use e-cigarettes are thriving as a black market on the platform.

On TikTok, accounts with the names of well-known manufacturers, such as Shenzhen Hanqingda Technology Co., Ltd., which produces branded e-cigarettes HQD, can be seen uploading videos shot at the factory; inserting the flavoring agent into the tube, installing the battery and sticking it on the brand on the label. In one profile, a link to an external website can be found in the video description, which allows users to buy up to 300 e-cigarettes in bulk at one time, with the promise of shipping anywhere in the world.

Although TikTok's drug policy prohibits the depiction, promotion or trade of drugs and other controlled substances on the platform, the social media giant is still struggling under its weight. Various accounts have massive followings in the hundreds of thousands and often go viral. Multiple alternate accounts also exist, so when one is deleted, the others can continue to exist.

While it's difficult to reduce the actual number of vaping-related videos that may exist (as searches for any vaping-related term are now banned), VICE counted dozens of HDQ-branded sub-accounts with ratings ranging from zero to a few millions.

According to experts, part of TikTok's efforts to curb the promotion of e-cigarettes on its platform is that it relies heavily on users to report content from others, rather than being proactive on its own.

“TikTok emphasizes an automated approach, stating in their policy that it allows our team to focus more time on reviewing contextual or nuanced content such as hate speech, bullying and harassment, and misinformation.” Criminology and Gerry A criminal justice lecturer at the University of Fes told VICE.

On top of that, users can easily bypass the platform's policies by disguising their content as educational content and omitting text in videos that could point to direct ads.

“When we discuss whether content violates Community Guidelines, it’s also important to recognize that some content will always exist in an ambiguous gray area,” Childs said.

“For example, when considering vaping content on TikTok, there is a variety of content, including #vapetrics, where users demonstrate smoking skills. Some content creators may also use #vape because it is a skit part."

Disposable e-cigarettes themselves have been banned in Australia from 1 October 2021 because they are listed as Schedule 7 dangerous poisons under the National Poisons Standard. It is technically illegal to import, buy or sell e-cigarettes without a doctor's prescription, despite a booming market for corner stores across the country.

While police have said last year that they want to crack down on the illegal sale of e-cigarettes by Australian retailers, platforms such as TikTok and Instagram -- each of which relies heavily on artificial intelligence and machine learning to spot breaches of their terms of use -- Provide yourself with fertile soil.

"Social media by nature involves a lot of user-generated content," James Martin, a senior lecturer in criminology at Deakin University, told VICE.

“While there may be human reviewers who can review everything that is posted, you are increasingly relying on artificial intelligence and those automated technologies to detect content that may violate these policies, and of course these tools are not foolproof.”

Martin noted that users who are constantly navigating the platform are becoming more savvy, and that workarounds are a significant hurdle.

"It's a constant cat-and-mouse game," he said.

Similar issues were found in the US and UK markets. This is not surprising for an international platform like TikTok being adopted by young people around the world. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cracked down on the illegal sale of e-cigarettes online, particularly Juul's, in 2020. But other manufacturers, like PuffBar, have seen mass adoption.

It's these workarounds that will make it difficult for platforms to successfully moderate their content, Childs said.

"Every technology platform struggles with this, and often only applies Band-Aid solutions," he said.

"For example, in the case of this e-cigarette dealer's account, it's likely to be deleted next week, but at the same time, they're generating sales through their TikTok ads. If they're a successful vendor, they'll have repeat customers. Going directly to the website, they can easily create a new account again to gain followers. "

While TikTok's policy on describing e-cigarettes is clear, a TikTok spokesperson told VICE they will continue to invest massively to detect and remove content that violates its community guidelines.